2023-08-24 08:30:00
THE ESSENTIAL
German researchers sequenced RNA molecules from the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus to map the stress response in male and female mice. Oligodendrocytes, which play an important role in the regulation of brain activity, are highly sensitive to stress depending on the sex. In male mice, the gene expression of brain cells and their structure are altered following being exposed to stress.
“Stress-related psychiatric disorders and the stress system show marked differences between men and women, as well as divergent changes. Despite several proposed mechanisms, we still do not understand the molecular processes involved,” said researchers from the Max Planck Institute of Psychiatry (Germany). This is why they decided to carry out a study published in the journal Cells Reports.
Examine the activity of the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus
As part of the research, the scientists used advanced methods to analyze brain activity at the level of a single cell. “We aimed the most sensitive lens possible at the area of the brain that functions as the center of the mammalian stress response, the paraventricular nucleus of the hypothalamus. By sequencing RNA molecules in this part of the brain at the individual cell level, we were able to map the stress response in male and female mice along three main axes: how each cell type in that part of the brain responds to stress, how each cell type previously exposed to stress chronic responses to novel stress experience and how these responses differ between males and females”explained Dr. Elena Brivio, author of the work, in a statement.
Oligodendrocytes are very sensitive to stress depending on the sex
Next, the team mapped gene expression in more than 35,000 individual cells. The comprehensive mapping allowed the researchers to identify a long list of differences in gene expression between males and females, and between chronic stress and acute stress. The results showed that some brain cells were more sensitive to stress in female mice and others in males. The most significant difference was seen in a type of brain cell called “oligodendrocyte”, a cell subtype that provides support to nerve cells and plays an important role in regulating brain activity.
Chronic stress: an alteration in gene expression and cell structure
In male mice, exposure to stressful conditions, particularly chronic stress, altered not only the genetic expression of these cells and their interactions with surrounding nerve cells, but also their structure. In contrast, in females, no significant changes were observed in these cells, which were not sensitive to stress exposure. “Our results show that when it comes to health problems related to stress, depression and diabetes, it is very important to take into account the gender variable, because it has a significant impact on how different brain cells react to stress”concluded Alon Chen, co-author of the study.
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